Replacement battery for Beast

MICRider · 10-24-2009, 08:16 PM

Funny thing happened today. I went to WalMart armed with the dimensions of my Beast battery to buy a new one... Found the one I thought was the closest to fitting without modding the battery box. Lol, imagine my surprise when I am comparing the two batteries, they have the same part number! Now, I don't know much about batteries, perhaps they are sold by size giving them a generic number and as the batteries are identical the number is the same... Or else the batteries that WalMart sell are the same that was shipped with the machine, minus the "Energizer" decals. I really have my fingers crossed that this battery has more juice than the original... It goes dead just sitting! Have to be sold by size group I think? Lol, though I guess I picked the right one!

Regards,
Stew

MICRider · 10-24-2009, 08:18 PM

If I was braver I would have done some battery box surgery like PCD did and put in a much larger battery, but his is to run a winch and mine is just to start it, so I am hoping I have enough amps to spin it faster.

Regards,
Stew

waynev · 10-24-2009, 08:45 PM

Just a thought, have you checked if there is any amp draw when everything is turned off?, of my 3 gio quads all batteries have been fine, the only one that went dead was on my son's 50cc and i found the reason was i unhooked the siren on his remote stop/start and i must have armed the alarm without knowing and in 1.5 days the battery was totally dead.
I'd remove your original battery from the quad and charge it, then check the voltage, let it sit a day and recheck, if the voltage is pretty close to the same then there is probably something on your quad sucking power out of it when it shouldn't be.

MICRider · 10-24-2009, 08:56 PM

Good call, I never thought of any slow drains when the key was off. I will have to see if it does the same thing with the new battery. It does spin it way faster than the other one ever did though! Maybe I got a dud? Hoping that's all it was anyway. My machine had a rough journey as evidenced by a very bent up metal shipping frame, so maybe some good jars jostled things around? Love the bike, not fond of having to use the charger to start it

.

Regards,
Stew

Weldangrind · 10-25-2009, 03:31 AM

Hopefully the WallyWorld battery will meet your needs. Let us know how it performs.

MICRider · 10-25-2009, 08:39 AM

I hope it solves the problem too, though if it turns out to have been a current leak somewhere I guess I will have a spare battery at least

. Bonus part being that it was Wally's $44 battery and not one of the $100+ ones, though the bigger ones do have a lot more amps... No switches or anything on so if it keeps discharging I will have to look for a wire melted or something. Still anxiously waiting on the carb, c'mon UPS! Lol!

Regards,
Stew

LynnEdwards · 10-25-2009, 09:56 AM

The best to to test for current leaks is to remove the main fuse then insert a meter across the fuse terminals. Set the meter to measure current on the 10 amp scale (you will have to move the red probe over to the current jack instead of the normal volt/ohms jack). If the current reads zero than go to a more sensitive scale such as 200 mA (0.2 amps) scale.

You will have an instant quantitative reading of current drain. No need to wait around a day. If you have a current leak you can find the cause by watching the meter while you unplug stuff.

One caution: If you are on the sensitive current scales (less than 10 amps full scale) don't turn on a load (like headlights for example). You will blow the fuse in the meter. On the 10 amps scale you can turn things on and off as you please.

MICRider · 10-25-2009, 10:48 AM

Now that would be an awesome way to check for current leaks. So, with the meter in place between the fuse ends any reading other than 0 would be a leak/draw? Sorry if I got that wrong, but the only thing I have ever used my multimeter for was continuity and voltage checks... Thanks for any advice you can give, your method sounds much better than waiting for the battery to go dead.

Regards,
Stew

waynev · 10-25-2009, 11:01 AM

Yep, if you have a meter that will do amperage than that would be the quickest and easiest way, i only suggested my method not knowing if you had a meter or not, but either way if something was draining the battery down you would need a meter to get to the root of the problem anyways.

MICRider · 10-25-2009, 11:07 AM

Both ways are good, though with my meter ineptitude it would be easier to do the voltage drop thing... I might try em both but I'm still hoping it was just a bad battery to start with. Much easier than troubleshooting electrical

. Thanks for all suggestions guys!

Regards,
Stew

MICRider · 10-25-2009, 10:45 PM

I'm not going to tempt fate, but the new battery is spinning the Beast over waaay faster than the old one ever did, so I hope that takes care of the battery issue. Went riding with my son this afternoon/evening and due to my crappy set up on my carb it stalled about 20 times, but spun right back up each time with a thumb to the start button. Seriously wish I had the Mik already! I could take this carb apart and fart with it a bit to make it run better, but with the new one on the way I will just grin and bear it till it arrives!

Lol, and on a side note, I fired up my headlight in the dusk and my son said "That looks just like a Jack O lantern!" Lol, the bright orange quad is very seasonal

Regards,
Stew

LynnEdwards · 10-25-2009, 11:32 PM

Ok. so now that its running fine you need to make sure your battery charging system is working. Otherwise you battery will go dead again, and eventually sulphate up and be ruined.

With the quad running at a fairly fast clip with all the lights off. measure the battery voltage right on the battery terminals with a voltmeter. It should be 13.5 to 14.5 volts. Lead Acid batteries are simple in this regard. That is all they require to charge up. When depleted thay draw in lots of charge current in that voltage range, but when they are charged up they don't draw in anything.

I too had to change my chinese battery shortly after buying the quad (not a giovanni, BTW). The wallmart replacement ($27.00 USD) looked exactly the same in every detail as the original. On my quad I had one cell that would boil dry at every ride, spitting acid out the vent tube onto my rear suspension. The replacement from wallmart has been working fine now for 18 months. I haven't had to add a drop of water to any cell.

Before I bought the wallmart battery I looked at an Autozone battery. It too looked exactly the same in every detail to my original. But it was $55.00 USD. Wall mart may be the evil empire (according to some), but $55.00 for a $27.00 battery is evil too.

MICRider · 11-03-2009, 10:44 PM

Okey doke, I never did get around to testing the voltage when the quad was running, but the new battery seems to have done the trick. Spins over a lot faster and doesn't go dead after a day. So, I guess I got a bad battery from Gio. I'm cool with that though, for what I paid for the Beast I dont mind having to replace a few things. Heck, for what I paid I'm still astounded that it even runs!

Regards,
Stew

10-24-2009, 08:16 PM	#1
MICRider Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 3,274	Replacement battery for Beast Funny thing happened today. I went to WalMart armed with the dimensions of my Beast battery to buy a new one... Found the one I thought was the closest to fitting without modding the battery box. Lol, imagine my surprise when I am comparing the two batteries, they have the same part number! Now, I don't know much about batteries, perhaps they are sold by size giving them a generic number and as the batteries are identical the number is the same... Or else the batteries that WalMart sell are the same that was shipped with the machine, minus the "Energizer" decals. I really have my fingers crossed that this battery has more juice than the original... It goes dead just sitting! Have to be sold by size group I think? Lol, though I guess I picked the right one! Regards, Stew
	0

10-25-2009, 03:31 AM	#5
Weldangrind Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Sardis, BC, Canada Posts: 25,977	Hopefully the WallyWorld battery will meet your needs. Let us know how it performs. __________________ Weldangrind "I figure I'm well-prepared for coping with a bike that comes from the factory with unresolved issues and that rewards the self-reliant owner." - Buccaneer
	0

10-24-2009, 08:18 PM	#2
MICRider Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 3,274	If I was braver I would have done some battery box surgery like PCD did and put in a much larger battery, but his is to run a winch and mine is just to start it, so I am hoping I have enough amps to spin it faster. Regards, Stew
	0

10-24-2009, 08:45 PM	#3
waynev Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: London, Ontario Posts: 1,097	Just a thought, have you checked if there is any amp draw when everything is turned off?, of my 3 gio quads all batteries have been fine, the only one that went dead was on my son's 50cc and i found the reason was i unhooked the siren on his remote stop/start and i must have armed the alarm without knowing and in 1.5 days the battery was totally dead. I'd remove your original battery from the quad and charge it, then check the voltage, let it sit a day and recheck, if the voltage is pretty close to the same then there is probably something on your quad sucking power out of it when it shouldn't be.
	0

10-24-2009, 08:56 PM	#4
MICRider Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 3,274	Good call, I never thought of any slow drains when the key was off. I will have to see if it does the same thing with the new battery. It does spin it way faster than the other one ever did though! Maybe I got a dud? Hoping that's all it was anyway. My machine had a rough journey as evidenced by a very bent up metal shipping frame, so maybe some good jars jostled things around? Love the bike, not fond of having to use the charger to start it . Regards, Stew
	0

10-25-2009, 08:39 AM	#6
MICRider Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 3,274	I hope it solves the problem too, though if it turns out to have been a current leak somewhere I guess I will have a spare battery at least . Bonus part being that it was Wally's $44 battery and not one of the $100+ ones, though the bigger ones do have a lot more amps... No switches or anything on so if it keeps discharging I will have to look for a wire melted or something. Still anxiously waiting on the carb, c'mon UPS! Lol! Regards, Stew
	0

10-25-2009, 09:56 AM	#7
LynnEdwards Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Tracy, California Posts: 83	The best to to test for current leaks is to remove the main fuse then insert a meter across the fuse terminals. Set the meter to measure current on the 10 amp scale (you will have to move the red probe over to the current jack instead of the normal volt/ohms jack). If the current reads zero than go to a more sensitive scale such as 200 mA (0.2 amps) scale. You will have an instant quantitative reading of current drain. No need to wait around a day. If you have a current leak you can find the cause by watching the meter while you unplug stuff. One caution: If you are on the sensitive current scales (less than 10 amps full scale) don't turn on a load (like headlights for example). You will blow the fuse in the meter. On the 10 amps scale you can turn things on and off as you please.
	0

10-25-2009, 10:48 AM	#8
MICRider Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 3,274	Now that would be an awesome way to check for current leaks. So, with the meter in place between the fuse ends any reading other than 0 would be a leak/draw? Sorry if I got that wrong, but the only thing I have ever used my multimeter for was continuity and voltage checks... Thanks for any advice you can give, your method sounds much better than waiting for the battery to go dead. Regards, Stew
	0

10-25-2009, 11:01 AM	#9
waynev Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: London, Ontario Posts: 1,097	Yep, if you have a meter that will do amperage than that would be the quickest and easiest way, i only suggested my method not knowing if you had a meter or not, but either way if something was draining the battery down you would need a meter to get to the root of the problem anyways.
	0

10-25-2009, 11:07 AM	#10
MICRider Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 3,274	Both ways are good, though with my meter ineptitude it would be easier to do the voltage drop thing... I might try em both but I'm still hoping it was just a bad battery to start with. Much easier than troubleshooting electrical . Thanks for all suggestions guys! Regards, Stew
	0

10-25-2009, 10:45 PM	#11
MICRider Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 3,274	I'm not going to tempt fate, but the new battery is spinning the Beast over waaay faster than the old one ever did, so I hope that takes care of the battery issue. Went riding with my son this afternoon/evening and due to my crappy set up on my carb it stalled about 20 times, but spun right back up each time with a thumb to the start button. Seriously wish I had the Mik already! I could take this carb apart and fart with it a bit to make it run better, but with the new one on the way I will just grin and bear it till it arrives! Lol, and on a side note, I fired up my headlight in the dusk and my son said "That looks just like a Jack O lantern!" Lol, the bright orange quad is very seasonal Regards, Stew
	0

10-25-2009, 11:32 PM	#12
LynnEdwards Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Tracy, California Posts: 83	Ok. so now that its running fine you need to make sure your battery charging system is working. Otherwise you battery will go dead again, and eventually sulphate up and be ruined. With the quad running at a fairly fast clip with all the lights off. measure the battery voltage right on the battery terminals with a voltmeter. It should be 13.5 to 14.5 volts. Lead Acid batteries are simple in this regard. That is all they require to charge up. When depleted thay draw in lots of charge current in that voltage range, but when they are charged up they don't draw in anything. I too had to change my chinese battery shortly after buying the quad (not a giovanni, BTW). The wallmart replacement ($27.00 USD) looked exactly the same in every detail as the original. On my quad I had one cell that would boil dry at every ride, spitting acid out the vent tube onto my rear suspension. The replacement from wallmart has been working fine now for 18 months. I haven't had to add a drop of water to any cell. Before I bought the wallmart battery I looked at an Autozone battery. It too looked exactly the same in every detail to my original. But it was $55.00 USD. Wall mart may be the evil empire (according to some), but $55.00 for a $27.00 battery is evil too.
	0

11-03-2009, 10:44 PM	#13
MICRider Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 3,274	Okey doke, I never did get around to testing the voltage when the quad was running, but the new battery seems to have done the trick. Spins over a lot faster and doesn't go dead after a day. So, I guess I got a bad battery from Gio. I'm cool with that though, for what I paid for the Beast I dont mind having to replace a few things. Heck, for what I paid I'm still astounded that it even runs! Regards, Stew
	0